thedrifter
01-12-03, 07:43 PM
Story by Debbie Lefebvre
It doesn't seem to matter whether the experience spans three years or 30; memories of shared trials and triumphs in the Marine Corps often resurface around Nov. 10th--the Marine Corps birthday. The nostalgia that naturally characterizes Marines was heightened even more as the last birthday of the 20th century approached.
That was the motivation for Dave Rydberg, a talented illustrator who wrote to Leatherneck nearly 38 years after he had last sketched anything for the Marine Corps. Back then, Rydberg was a 23-year-old Marine private first class working as an illustrator for The Globe, the base newspaper at Camp Lejeune, N.C. The Dec. 7, 1961, issue carried his illustration depicting Mercury astronaut and Marine John Glenn's historic space flight as the first American to circle the earth. Rydberg used Joe Rosenthal's famous Associated Press photograph of the flag raising on Mount Suribachi, Iwo Jima, as a model. But, he substituted members of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration team raising an Atlas rocket of the type used in the U.S. space program. The drawing was entitled "Iwo or Canaveral--Teamwork."
After the illustration appeared, the original artwork was forwarded to Glenn, who was a lieutenant colonel in the Marine Corps at the time, by the editor of The Globe. In a letter dated Jan. 25, 1962, the astronaut commended Rydberg for the work: "It is very well done and certainly expresses the feelings of teamwork that we have in this project, just as the original Iwo statue expressed the teamwork following that battle."
Rydberg had succeeded in capturing the pride of a nation in his drawing. A couple of years later, he left the Corps and immersed himself in a civilian career as an illustrator. But not long ago, a persistent desire began to nag him. "I wanted to create something that would capture the feeling again, that would stir the pride in every Marine who saw it," he explained.
What really got the artist thinking about his service days was the Marine Corps' 224th birthday. "I decided to do something special for our last birthday of [the 20th] century to remind the world of our heritage. My motive was quite selfish at the time as I wanted to create a shirt design that only I would have at [last] year's birthday banquet," he said.
The result was his highly stylized rendition of the Marine Corps emblem. It shows a bald eagle perched aggressively on top of the globe, grasping a grenade in one wing and the noncommissioned officers' sword in the other. Sporting a World War I campaign hat and dog tags, the eagle's menacing look is enhanced by a bandolier of M1 rifle ammunition looped over the top of the wing, a holstered .45-caliber pistol on the breast and a sheath knife around the waist.
Emblazoned in red, white and blue letters above the eagle's head is the word "Marines." Below the eagle's right wing begins the inscription, "kickin' butt since 1775." At the bottom left-hand corner of the drawing, Rydberg signed his piece and put the motto "Semper Fi" and his dates of service: "58-64."
What happened next was predictable--he showed a couple of Marine Corps buddies the finished T-shirt with his insignia design on the back, and they wanted shirts of their own. "Many of my friends and [other] former leathernecks are now soliciting me for these shirts so they too can be adorned with my 'kickin' butt' tribute to my beloved Marine Corps," he said.
Rydberg says he sees proof everywhere of the notion that the Marine Corps is a band of brothers. "I can go out and shoot pool anywhere in town and guys will see the USMC tattoo on my arm. They'll come up, shake my hand and say, 'Semper Fi, brother.'
"I can't begin to tell you what pride I still harbor when asked about my military affiliation," he continued, "and the consequent respect I'm given from those I've told. It's great to say, 'I was a U.S. Marine.' I cannot imagine being anything else!"
When Rydberg speaks of the Corps, it is obvious--from the sentiment in his voice--that he gained more from it than his skills as an illustrator. That sentiment explains why the artist didn't need to use a model of the Marine Corps emblem in developing his design. He simply sketched what is etched in his heart.
His next project is to produce an illustration commemorating the sacrifices of Marines during the Korean War.
Editor's note: Mr. Don Moore, senior writer for The Sun-Herald in Englewood, Fla., contributed to this article by providing interview excerpts
Sempers,
Roger
It doesn't seem to matter whether the experience spans three years or 30; memories of shared trials and triumphs in the Marine Corps often resurface around Nov. 10th--the Marine Corps birthday. The nostalgia that naturally characterizes Marines was heightened even more as the last birthday of the 20th century approached.
That was the motivation for Dave Rydberg, a talented illustrator who wrote to Leatherneck nearly 38 years after he had last sketched anything for the Marine Corps. Back then, Rydberg was a 23-year-old Marine private first class working as an illustrator for The Globe, the base newspaper at Camp Lejeune, N.C. The Dec. 7, 1961, issue carried his illustration depicting Mercury astronaut and Marine John Glenn's historic space flight as the first American to circle the earth. Rydberg used Joe Rosenthal's famous Associated Press photograph of the flag raising on Mount Suribachi, Iwo Jima, as a model. But, he substituted members of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration team raising an Atlas rocket of the type used in the U.S. space program. The drawing was entitled "Iwo or Canaveral--Teamwork."
After the illustration appeared, the original artwork was forwarded to Glenn, who was a lieutenant colonel in the Marine Corps at the time, by the editor of The Globe. In a letter dated Jan. 25, 1962, the astronaut commended Rydberg for the work: "It is very well done and certainly expresses the feelings of teamwork that we have in this project, just as the original Iwo statue expressed the teamwork following that battle."
Rydberg had succeeded in capturing the pride of a nation in his drawing. A couple of years later, he left the Corps and immersed himself in a civilian career as an illustrator. But not long ago, a persistent desire began to nag him. "I wanted to create something that would capture the feeling again, that would stir the pride in every Marine who saw it," he explained.
What really got the artist thinking about his service days was the Marine Corps' 224th birthday. "I decided to do something special for our last birthday of [the 20th] century to remind the world of our heritage. My motive was quite selfish at the time as I wanted to create a shirt design that only I would have at [last] year's birthday banquet," he said.
The result was his highly stylized rendition of the Marine Corps emblem. It shows a bald eagle perched aggressively on top of the globe, grasping a grenade in one wing and the noncommissioned officers' sword in the other. Sporting a World War I campaign hat and dog tags, the eagle's menacing look is enhanced by a bandolier of M1 rifle ammunition looped over the top of the wing, a holstered .45-caliber pistol on the breast and a sheath knife around the waist.
Emblazoned in red, white and blue letters above the eagle's head is the word "Marines." Below the eagle's right wing begins the inscription, "kickin' butt since 1775." At the bottom left-hand corner of the drawing, Rydberg signed his piece and put the motto "Semper Fi" and his dates of service: "58-64."
What happened next was predictable--he showed a couple of Marine Corps buddies the finished T-shirt with his insignia design on the back, and they wanted shirts of their own. "Many of my friends and [other] former leathernecks are now soliciting me for these shirts so they too can be adorned with my 'kickin' butt' tribute to my beloved Marine Corps," he said.
Rydberg says he sees proof everywhere of the notion that the Marine Corps is a band of brothers. "I can go out and shoot pool anywhere in town and guys will see the USMC tattoo on my arm. They'll come up, shake my hand and say, 'Semper Fi, brother.'
"I can't begin to tell you what pride I still harbor when asked about my military affiliation," he continued, "and the consequent respect I'm given from those I've told. It's great to say, 'I was a U.S. Marine.' I cannot imagine being anything else!"
When Rydberg speaks of the Corps, it is obvious--from the sentiment in his voice--that he gained more from it than his skills as an illustrator. That sentiment explains why the artist didn't need to use a model of the Marine Corps emblem in developing his design. He simply sketched what is etched in his heart.
His next project is to produce an illustration commemorating the sacrifices of Marines during the Korean War.
Editor's note: Mr. Don Moore, senior writer for The Sun-Herald in Englewood, Fla., contributed to this article by providing interview excerpts
Sempers,
Roger